Dacia has admitted to having inconsistencies in the paint process at the Renault-Nissan plant in Chennai that could cause surface corrosion on the Duster’s door sills and bonnet. This is one of the reasons as to why the Duster is no longer exported from India to the UK.
Earlier this year, Renault shifted the production base for right-hand drive Dusters from its Indian plant in Chennai to Dacia’s Pitesti plant in Romania citing logistical reasons. However, it now seems that there was more to the shift than just logistics and financial efficiency. Apparently Dacia received around 90 complaints in the UK over corrosion issues on the Duster SUV. The issue is said to be pertaining to the India made Dusters that were exported to the UK market from the Chennai based plant.
In a recent statement, Dacia agreed that the India made Dusters had inconsistencies in the paint process that could cause surface corrosion on the SUV’s door sills and the bonnet. While Renault’s budget brand was quick to address to the issues of customers in the UK, there had not been any initiative taken by Renault India. India gets the very same Renault Duster as the UK market and it is a high possibility that some of the vehicles sold to Indian customers could creep up with the corrosion issue.
Renault was quick to take action and shifted the production base to its Romanian plant for the UK market, where the left-hand drive Dusters are also manufactured. While the move was swift, it does leave a huge question as to what has the French automaker done to resolve the inconsistency on the India made vehicle. If the vehicles have been affected in the country, why hasn’t Renault initiated a recall process for the same? Or is the company just playing ignorant to Indian customers?
Since its launch in 2012, Renault has been selling the Duster without many changes. The company has sold over 20,000 made-in-India Dusters under the Dacia brand in the UK and has managed to cross the one lakh sales milestone in India. The automaker states that manufacturing the Duster in Romania allows for reduced waiting time, while a lot of parts are already sourced from Romania, thus offering financial and logistical savings. We do expect Renault to come up with an official statement on the Dusters that have been affected by the corrosion issue sold in our country.
